Return to Johto
by Cloud Advent
Summary: Satoshi is off on a new adventure. Together with Hikari, Kotone, and Kazunari, he'll encounter new surprises and new dangers as he ventures back out into the Johto Region.
1. Author's Note: Please read

**Hey everyone!**

Alright due to some complaints I have received i've decided to postpone the next few chapters and also rewrite all the chapters that have been written so far. I can't exactly give you a time frame on when Return to Johto will be back up but I can say that it may take a while. I just wanna thank you all for reading and also I wanna thank those who have reviewed as well. I wish that you would all continue to look forward to the day I start posting again. In the mean time i'll be posting a couple other stories i've been working on as well so please be on the look out for that. Thank you all for reading and reviewing and I promise to get this story back on track sometime in the near future. Till next time~

- Cloud Advent


	2. Author's Note: Update!

**Update!**

I know you're all dying to know when this story will be back up. Well i'm in a bit of a rut in terms of the direction I want this story to go. I had everything mostly planned out when I first started writing this. However I came to realize that the story was climaxing too quickly for my liking and that those constant twists and cliffhangers I put in actually shortened the story's lifespan. lol. So i'm gonna be taking a bit more time deciding where I want this story to go. Also, about the japanese/english names dilemna. I'm still undecided. I mean if it were me i'd prefer to write the japanese names for the characters but at the same time I don't really like the japanese names for the pokemon. I also have all of you readers to consider so I will leave that up to you. Leave a message or review and let me know what you want. Also i'm going to go back into writing my dissidia fic The Ace and The Esper and at the same time i'm gonna continue on with Nobody But You. Because of that Return to Johto might not be coming for a while. But I promise you that doesn't mean i'm not gonna finish this story. This is the first story i've actually written and the one that has gotten the most people interested and reviewing (good or bad). So anyway. Let me know how you all feel about Return To Johto and whether or not you want me to continue with it. Please be sure to read and review my other stories as well and I promise I will try to get more updates and uploads going. Thanks for all of your wonderful support.

- Cloud Advent.


	3. The Original Tale Reupload

Author's Note: For those of you who want to see the original story I've decided to reupload it for all of you. However I will be completely rewriting the story so the rewritten version will be different than what is below.

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**Chapter 1: Tragedy in Pallet Town!**

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Return to Johto

-Chapter 1-

"Pikachu! Volt tackle!"

The small electric mouse did as it's trainer commanded and was quickly engulfed in light as it sprinted towards a nearby boulder.

"Pika...pika...pika...pika...PIKA!"

The mouse-like pokemon collided against the rock smashing it into nothing but rubble. Once the dust cleared the electric rodent turned towards its' trainer eagerly awaiting his response. Satoshi could only smile as he pumped his fist into the air.

"That was great Pikachu. Keep this up and we'll be unstoppable."

Satoshi was really pleased with how training was going today. However he still had a lot of work to do in order to catch up to Shinji. He could still remember the Sinnoh League where he narrowly lost to his rival in the semi-finals. But he wasn't gonna let that keep him down. That's why he had decided come back to his hometown of Pallet to train at Professor Oak's lab.

"Ah, Satoshi!"

The raven-haired boy's training was interrupted as he looked towards the direction of the voice. Professor Oak was waving at him to come over. It looked it was rather important. As he hurried over to the professor the young boy wondered what he wanted.

"Hey something wrong professor?" the young trainer asked.

"No, nothing is wrong my boy. Just thought I'd drop by and see how your training was going. Oh and your mother wanted me to tell you that your friend Hikari had dropped by. I assume she's still waiting for you at your house."

Hearing Hikari's name immediately caught the boy's attention. He hadn't seen her since he left Sinnoh to return home. He then began to wonder what the girl had been up to since he left.

"How bout it Pikachu? Want to see Hikari again?"

The yellow mouse eagerly nodded it's head as it hopped up onto its' trainer's shoulder. Satoshi smiled as he turned his attention back to the professor.

"I'll be heading off then professor."

The old man nodded his head with a smile as he knew the young man was eager to see his friend again. With that, Satoshi headed off towards home excited to hear from his Sinnoh friend again.

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Once he finally reached his house he opened the door only for a stream bubbles to collide into his face.

"No! Piplup don't use bubblebeam! Cyndaquil you're gonna burn the house down!"

Peeping his head through the door Satoshi was greeted with the sight of Piplup and Cyndaquil having another heated fight with Hikari trying desperately to break it up. From the looks of it the inside of the house was a bit of a mess due to the scuffle.

"If the both of you don't stop fighting right now you won't get any poffins ever!" the blue haired girl yelled obviously having enough of the two pokemon's constant squabbles.

The two pokemon only scoffed as they turned their backs on each other. Some things never change.

"Are those two still going at it?" Satoshi asked with a smile as he looked towards his blue haired friend.

Hikari's ears immediately perked up as she heard the boy's voice. Turning to him she gave him a bright a smile as she spoke.

"Satoshi! It's great to see you again. How have you been?" she asked interested in learning how her friend was doing after all this time.

"I've been great. Although my house has looked a little a better." the raven haired boy replied with slight chuckle as he took a look around his scorched living room.

Noticing this, Hikari looked around the room and realized that the house was indeed a mess. Turning to her two pokemon, she quickly scolded the two and ordered them to apologize to Satoshi. The pokemon only continued to scoff at each other which angered the Sinnoh native.

"It's alright. No harm done. Besides, Mr Mime can take care of this mess anyway." The raven haired trainer added.

Almost as if on cue, the mime pokemon came out of the kitchen with a bucket and sponge ready to clean the mess the two pokemon made.

Smiling at Mimey, Satoshi turned back to Hikari and asked, "So what brings you Pallet Town?"

Hearing this the blue haired coordinator smiled at the boy as she replied, "Just thought I'd pay you and Pikachu a visit. Your mom said I could stay for the night and went to go get groceries. That and i'm gonna be heading for the Johto region soon."

Satoshi was surprised by the last statement. "The Johto region? What are you...oh! Contests right?"

The coordinator nodded as she replied, "Yup! Kotone told me that the Johto contests had some of the best coordinators around. So I thought i'd start a new journey there."

"Kotone? Oh the girl from the Johto Festival right?" Satoshi asked remembering the Johto trainer.

"Yeah that's her. She and Kazunari are waiting for me in New Bark Town." she added as she returned her Cyndaquil into its' ball. "Hey! Why don't you come along? I mean there aren't gonna be anymore leagues for a while. Come on it'll be fun." Hikari asked as she awaited his reply while hoping he would say yes.

Satoshi thought about it for a moment. He really didn't have anything else to do other than train for another league. However the next league wouldn't start for another year. And, like Hikari mentioned, it might be fun revisiting Johto.

Just before he could reply however a loud explosion could be heard in the distance.

"What was that!?!" Hikari exclaimed startled by the noise.

Dashing to the window Satoshi noticed that a large airship was hovering over Professor Oak's lab. Not only that but the lab was engulfed in flames.

"The professor's in trouble!" he exclaimed. Without hesitating he quickly ran out of his house with Hikari following closely behind.

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Once they had reached the lab the two trainers were shocked at the scene they were witnessing. Professor Oak's beloved research facility was now a raging inferno. Reacting quickly Satoshi told Hikari to get as many pokemon as she could to safety while he went to go look for the professor.

"Be careful Satoshi." the coordinator said worriedly.

The raven haired trainer only smiled as he gave her a thumbs up. "No need to worry right?"

With that, the two trainers wished each other well as they split up. Hikari headed towards Oak's ranch while Satoshi called out his Buizel.

"Bui, bui."

"Buizel. I'm gonna need you to put out the flames with your water gun while Pikachu and I look for the professor."

The water pokemon nodded it's head as it lead its' trainer to the lab's entrance. It then spat out a jet of water on the door putting out any flames near it. Satoshi quickly opened the door while Buizel continued to fire away with its' water gun.

Meanwhile, Hikari was busy herding the other pokemon away from the lab. Once all the pokemon were safely away from the flames the blue haired coordinator quickly looked at her Piplup.

"Piplup use bubblebeam and try put out as much of fire as you can."

The blue penguin like pokemon nodded as it fired away with it's bubblebeam. However the flames were too strong and it seemed like that wasn't gonna be enough to put out the blaze.

Just then a jet stream of water hit the fire. Turning to the source Hikari noticed a small blue alligator like pokemon using water gun to help put out the burning lab.

"That's a Totodile. You must be Satoshi's!" the coordinator exclaimed.

The blue pokemon happily danced as the girl giggled at its' antics. Turning her attention back on the mission at hand the girl figured two water types were better than none.

"Piplup, Totodile, do whatever you can to put out that fire!" she ordered.

The pokemon nodded as they fired their water attacks at the burning facility.

Back inside the lab, Satoshi was desperately trying to find the professor while trying to avoid the blaze.

"Professor Oak where are you!" he shouted hoping for a reply.

While Buizel was busily trying to keep the flames at bay the young trainer noticed a shadowy figure in the distance. Running towards the figure Satoshi met face to face with a frightening large man wearing a long black suit. On the front it had a strange star emblem. Over his shoulder he was carrying an unconscious Professor Oak.

"Who are you! And what are you doing with the professor?" Satoshi yelled angrily. His Pikachu and Buizel then jumped out in front of him, both ready to attack on his command.

The large man let out a loud hardy laugh as he looked at the young boy.

"I am Raijin. One of the four generals of Team Zodiac. As for what I am doing with the professor here. That's not really any of your concern."

The large man then stepped back as a pile of debris fell from the ceiling separating him from Satoshi and his pokemon. The large man looked into the young boys eyes before an evil smirk grew across his face. Just then a rope ladder fell from the hole in the ceiling and the large man quickly clung on to it. Just as he was being lifted away the large man left Satoshi with a few cryptic words.

"We will meet again."

Before the young trainer could call out an attack some more debris began falling from the ceiling. At this rate the whole lab was gonna collapse. Quickly calling his Buizel back into its ball, Satoshi and Pikachu quickly broke into a sprint for the exit only to find it had been completely blocked off by the debris.

Outside of the lab Hikari watched in shock as the large airship that had been hovering over the lab began fly away after a large man carrying what looked the professor made it on board.

Just then the burning research facility began to crumble and was in danger of collapsing. Just as the coordinator started to flee along with Tododile and Piplup she quickly remembered that Satoshi was still inside the burning building. Turning back in horror, she watched as the facility collapsed into nothing but burning rubble.

Hikari quickly broke into a mad dash towards the ruin as tears threatened to fall from her eyes.

"SATOSHI!!!"

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**Chapter 2: New Promises, New Beginnings!**

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Satoshi: Oh no! Did I make it out alive?

Cloud: Maybe...

Hikari: Just tell us already!

Cloud: All will be revealed after this disclaimer!

Satoshi & Hikari: Cloud Advent does not own Pokemon. Although he really wishes he did.

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Return to Johto

Chapter 2

"What do I do now?" Satoshi thought to himself as he tried to figure out another way to get out of lab.

The ceiling was coming apart at a rapid pace and if he didn't do something soon there was no doubt he was gonna die in this place. All the exits were blocked so unless something magically opened...wait! It was then he remembered his training with Pikachu earlier.

Turning to his yellow pokemon he quickly stated, "Pikachu. I'm gonna need you to make us a way out."

The electric mouse looked at its' trainer questionably until it figured out what Satoshi had meant. Nodding its' head Pikachu quickly got into position.

"Alright then! Volt Tackle!" the trainer commanded.

The mouse pokemon quickly dashed towards towards a nearby wall as an aura of light encompassed its' small frame. As Pikachu managed to break through the wall Satoshi quickly followed as they both barely managed to make it out of the lab before it collapsed.

Gasping for fresh air, the young trainer breathed a sigh of relief as he managed to escape death once again.

"SATOSHI!!!"

Alarmed by the loud scream, the young boy turned to see Hikari sprinting rapidly towards the burnt down facility. Noticing the frightened expression on her face instantly caught his attention as he quickly called her over.

"Hikari! Over here!"

Hearing the boy's voice the blue haired coordinator anxiously looked in the direction it came from and sure enough he and Pikachu were there safe and sound. Running over to them Hikari nearly tackled Satoshi to the ground as she buried her face into his chest.

Surprised by the girl's actions the boy asked, "Hikari what's wr-"

"I was really scared you know!" the girl interrupted as she started to weep. "When the lab collapsed...I thought...that you..."

Unsure of what to do, Satoshi gently placed his hands on the coordinators delicate shoulders.

"I'm sorry for worrying you. But I'm okay now, and Pikachu is too."

As the blue haired coordinator's weeping stopped she slowly backed away from the boy. She looked into his eyes with a worried expression. "Promise me..."

"Promise me that whenever something dangerous like this happens you'll be okay."

Satoshi was puzzled by her words.

"Hikari..."

"Promise me." the girl repeated this time more firmly.

Looking into the girl's eyes he could see that she was very upset. Even more upset then when she had lost that contest back in Sinnoh. After a long pause he finally replied.

"I promise."

Feeling that that was enough for now, Hikari quickly wiped away the remaining tears from her eyes. She then smiled softly at the boy as he pulled back his hands from her shoulders.

At that moment, Totodile quickly interrupted the two as it hopped up and down trying to get their attention. Looking down at his pokemon, Satoshi was surprised to see the little blue alligator like pokemon.

"Hey Totodile. What's up?"

Noticing this Hikari smiled as she said, "He helped me and Piplup out while you were inside the lab that's what."

Hearing this Satoshi looked down at his pokemon with a grin as he asked, "Is that true Totodile?"

Totodile happily danced again signaling that this was indeed true. Placing his hand on pokemon's head Satoshi smiled as he added, "Hey that's great buddy."

After having its' head rubbed the pokemon danced even more happily as it exclaimed, "Toto, Toto, Toto-dile."

Smiling at his pokemon Satoshi quickly looked back at the remains of the lab. It was then he remembered the large man that had taken Professor Oak. "Raijin..."

"Satoshi! Hikari!"

Hearing a woman's voice the two turned to see Satoshi's mother running up the road.

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Once they had returned to Satoshi's home he quickly explained what had happened as well as the confrontation he had with Raijin. He then mentioned Team Zodiac...

"What could they want with Professor Oak?" Satoshi's mother asked worried about the whole situation.

"I don't know. But whatever they're after it can't be good." Satoshi replied.

Remembering the professor's unconscious form he made a fist with his hand and added, "We have to stop to them."

Hearing this Hikari turned to him with a worried expression. "Satoshi..."

Noticing the look on her face the young boy gave her a smile as he said, "We'll do it together Hikari. We stopped Team Galactic right? We can stop these guys too."

"And what if we can't?!?" The blue haired coordinator loudly replied.

Satoshi was taken back by her sudden serious tone. "Hikari..."

The coordinator looked down at her hands as she replied, "You saw what they did to Professor Oak's lab right? And you could've gotten seriously hurt in there...or worse."

Hearing this Satoshi shook his head as he replied, "But I made it out okay. Besides I made a promise right?"

This only caused the girl to worry more. "But what if you didn't make it out okay? These people are a lot more dangerous than Team Galactic from the looks of it. Satoshi..."

The raven haired trainer got up from his seat as he replied reassuringly, "No need to worry. I'm not gonna let anything bad happen. And so what if they're dangerous. I've come across more dangerous things before." He then pumped his fist into the air as he added, "Just leave everything to me."

As Satoshi turned and headed to for his room Hikari could only watch him as he left.

"He can be so stubborn." she said with a frown.

Noticing this Satoshi's mother put on a knowing smile as she spoke. "He'll be fine."

Surprised at those words Hikari turned to her asked, "Aren't you worried?"

The older woman turned to her seriously as she added, "Of course I'm worried. I worry about that boy everyday. But once he puts his mind to something there's no stopping him."

The Sinnoh native looked back down at her hands as her face was still filled with worry. The older woman only smiled at this as she asked, "Hikari promise me you'll look after Satoshi for me."

Hearing this Hikari quickly looked up at her. "Me?"

Nodding her head Satoshi's mother added, "He's as stubborn as a Tauros. But he does always come through in the end. Just promise me you'll look out for him."

The younger girl thought about this for a second before replying, "I promise."

Hearing this the older woman thanked her and gave her big smile which caused Hikari to smile as well.

That night both Satoshi and Hikari thought about the promises they made. As they closed their eyes both vowed not to break those promises before drifting off to sleep.

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The next morning both trainers woke up bright and early and made their way to Oak's ranch. Satoshi called for his Johto pokemon and before long a small group formed in front of the two.

"Okay you guys. As you already know the professor has been kidnapped. So I'm trusting you to help us out in getting him back." Turning to each pokemon he added, "Pikachu, Totodile, Bayleef, Cyndaquil, Noctowl, Heracross, I'm counting on each of you."

All the pokemon eagerly nodded their heads as they were ready for the task at hand. Looking at them Hikari turned to the boy as she asked, "So why did you choose these pokemon Satoshi?"

The young trainer smiled as he replied, "You saw the airship right? It was heading in the direction of the Johto region so I decided I'd use my Johto pokemon for this adventure."

As they left the ranch and made it on to the main road Satoshi paused to think for a second. "The problem now is where do we start?"

Hearing this Hikari thought about it before she remembered something. "Hey why don't we head to New Bark Town? Kotone and Kazunari are still waiting for me there so maybe they can help out?"

Thinking about it Satoshi decided the more people the better. He then nodded his head with a smile as he replied, "Alright then. So it's off to New Bark Town!"

"Then what are we waiting for?" The girl added with a smile of her own. "Time for another adventure!"

After giving each other the usual high five, the two trainers quickly began to run down the road headed for Johto. With a new resolve burning deep inside their hearts the two trainers were now ready for a new exciting adventure.

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Meanwhile, in a dark cavern.

"Do you have the package?" a masked figure asked through a large monitor.

"Yes sir. He put up quite a struggle but we have him in custody." Raijin replied as he pointed to the professor who was desperately struggling to get out of his restraints.

"Good. With him in our possession we can finally get project phoenix underway."

Closing the connection Raijin looked back at the professor before letting out another hardy laugh. With a sinister smirk he said menacingly, "You are gonna help us become immortal. You...and him."

As he finished one of the cavern walls slowly began to rise from the ground revealing an enormous metallic machine. The professor's eyes widened in shock as he witnessed that being held captive in the machine...was the Legendary Phoenix pokemon Ho-oh!

The legendary pokemon was struggling to escape from its' prison but to no avail. The large man continued to laugh as he said, "Try as you might Ho-oh but there is no escaping destiny. Together you and Professor Oak will make Team Zodiac the most unstoppable force this world has ever seen."

Turning back to professor he gave him a sinister look as he added with his menacing smile,

"It all begins here..."

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**Chapter 3: Run Pachirisu, Run!**

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Kotone: Hello~

Kazunari: Um..hello.

Kotone: Geez Kazunari mind giving it some pep?

Kazunari: Um..well..

Cloud Advent: Just get on with the disclaimer already. -_-

Kotone & Kazunari: Cloud Advent does not own Pokemon! But he still really wishes he did.

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Return to Johto

-Chapter 3-

"Slow down Kotone!" a young boy wearing glasses called out as he struggled to keep up with his female companion.

"Well hurry up then Kazunari!" the brown haired girl called back wishing her friend would try to be a little more energetic. "Hikari's gonna be arriving in New Bark Town soon and because you're such a slowpoke we might not make it there in time to meet her!"

"It's not my fault! You're the one who wanted to stop by Goldenrod City to shop!" said the boy in his defense.

"But that was because the Miltank dolls they had were sooo cute! I even picked one out for Hikari as a gift." Reaching into her bag, the girl cheerfully pulled out one of the dolls she had bought to show to her companion. "See? Don't you think it's cute Kazunari?"

The young breeder only let out a sigh as he ignored the girl's question for the time being. For him, it was impossible arguing with this girl since she would always come out on top. However they had been traveling together for so long that he's gotten used to it.

Checking his pokegear he pulled up the map to see there current location. Judging from the distance from where they were on the map to where the next town was he speculated it would only take an hour to reach New Bark Town.

As he looked back up from his pokegear he was startled by Kotone who had been staring at him with an annoyed look rather too closely for his liking. "W-what is it?" he asked nervously as he pulled his head away from her face.

The girl only let out a sigh as she turned and looked away from the boy. "Never mind." She then crossed her arms while her cheeks puffed up slightly as she muttered, "Honestly Kazunari. What's Hikari gonna think if you're always so...you. Can't you be a little more enthusiastic?"

Kazunari looked back at her with a slight frown as he replied, "What's that got to do with anything? Besides you're the one whose got enough enthusiasm for the both of us."

Kotone quickly turned back to look at the young breeder as she replied, "But that's because you're not energetic at all. If you want to impress Hikari then you're gonna have to be a lot more outgoing."

The boy with the glasses blushed heavily at this as he stuttered out, "W-what makes you think I want to impress Hikari?"

The hat wearing girl giggled at his reaction as she happily replied, "I was just kidding. Honestly, you can't take a joke at all Kazunari."

The poor boy was shocked by his friend's teasing. "B-but..t-that's only cause you..!"

Suddenly, Kotone sprinted up ahead before stopping as she noticed a town over the horizon. "We're here!" she called out as she gazed out at New Bark Town. It wasn't a particularly large town but it did have Professor Elm's research lab which stood out amongst the other small buildings.

Grinning at the sight Kotone turned her head back towards her breeder friend as she shouted back, "Hurry up Kazunari! Hikari's probably already waiting for us at the pokemon center!" She then cheerfully skipped down the road into town.

Realizing he was falling behind again, the young boy struggled to keep up with his cheerful companion as he shouted, "W-wait for me!"

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"We're finally here!" Hikari stated with a grin as the two trainers arrived at New Bark Town.

"Man, this brings back a lot of memories." Satoshi said with a smile as he remembered how his journey through Johto started out here.

Turning to the blue haired coordinator he asked, "So where were you supposed to meet up with them?"

"At the pokemon center." Hikari replied. "They should have already arrived here days ago but knowing those two they might have gotten here a little late."

Just then a small beam of light shot out from the coordinator's waist as a white squirrel-like pokemon appeared. Hikari's Pachirisu decided to once again let itself out of it's ball as it curiously looked around at its' new surroundings.

"Ah! Pachirisu what did I tell you about staying inside your ball until I call on you?" the Sinnoh native scolded as she pulled out the pokemon's pokeball. "Now back inside your pokeball."

However the electric rodent had other plans as it dodged the red beam of light that shot from the pokeball. Annoyed by this, Hikari quickly fired multiple rounds of red beams hoping that one would hit the mischievous pokemon but sadly for her, Pachirisu was having grand ole time dodging the beams. Having had enough of their little game of laser tag Hikari made an attempt to grab Pachirisu only for it to unleash its' discharge on the poor girl.

Giggling at its' work the mischievous pokemon quickly ran off and disappeared into a crowd of people. As Hikari slowly pulled herself together after the electric attack she realized that her hair was once again a mess due to the static from the attack. A wave of evil intent radiated off the furious girl as she glared at the direction her pokemon ran off to. "Pa..chi...ri...suu!!!"

Frightened by the evil aura the girl was giving off, Satoshi and Pikachu quickly backed away as the coordinator slowly got to her feet. She then broke into a mad dash as she shouted, "WHEN I GET MY HANDS ON YOU, YOU'RE GONNA BE IN BIG TROUBLE PACHIRISU!!!"

Watching the girl run off, Satoshi and Pikachu looked at each other with a confused look on their faces before they quickly ran off to catch up with the blue haired coordinator hoping that her pokemon would still be alive when they got there.

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Meanwhile, Kotone came to a stop in the middle of town before she looked back in the direction that she came. Noticing Kazunari hadn't yet caught up with her, she frowned as she placed her hand on her forehead in annoyance. "That Kazunari..."

Just then a small white rodent came dashing passed her before coming to a stop. It then turned and ran back to the girl as it happily called out to her. Bending down to look at the pokemon, Kotone smiled as she said, "Hey there cutie! What are you doing out here all by yourself."

"NOW I'VE GOT YOU!" an angry voice yelled as Kotone shivered from the sudden killing aura that filled the air. Slowly turning towards the voice, the girl from Johto was met face to face with a very pissed off coordinator.

"H-Hikari?" she said nervously as she looked at her old friend who clearly wasn't in a good mood. The blue haired coordinator ignored her completely though as her eyes landed on Pachirisu.

"Pa...chi...ri...suu!!!"

Fearing for its' life the small rodent quickly dashed away while it's trainer was in hot pursuit. As they ran off, Kotone could only thank Arceus that she was somehow still alive. Once she had gotten up, she began to wonder what the deal was until she heard someone call out, "Hey Kotone!"

Looking back, Kotone noticed Satoshi and Pikachu running up the road. "Satoshi, Pikachu!" she said with a smile as she waved at the two.

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At that moment, Kazunari was busy looking for his long-time traveling companion. "Where could she be?" he wondered as thoughts of her abandoning him ran through his head. "Waah, Kotone where are you?!?" he called out in agony.

As he looked around, a certain electric rodent zoomed passed him with a fearful expression on its' face. "What pokemon was that?" he said in astonishment as he pulled out his pokedex. However, he was soon tackled to the ground by something that had been moving at a fast pace.

Feeling something heavy on top of him Kazunari slowly opened his eyes to see Hikari laying on top of him in a rather suggestive position. Blushing heavily at the situation they were in, the young breeder quickly stuttered out, "H-H-Hikari!?! I..t-this is.. I didn't m-mean to..."

However his feeling of embarassment quickly turned into absolute fear as Hikari's killing aura slowly started to suffocate him under her weight.

"GET BACK HERE PACHIRISU!!!" she yelled as she quickly got up and resumed her chase. As she ran off, the young breeder was left lying on the ground.

"W-what just happened..?" The poor boy asked just before he fainted from the shock of the incident.

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While Pachirisu dashed down the road, it was quickly halted by a dead-end. The poor squirrel like pokemon attempted to find a way out but to no avail. It then felt a cold shiver run down its' spine.

"Oh Pachirisu!" a voice called out from behind it. The pokemon quickly turned around in fear however Hikari was looking unusually calm.

"Silly thing, what did I tell you about listening to me. I was really scared you might have gotten hurt." The girl said with a sweet smile. She then bent down and held out her arm.

"Now come here Pachirisu. Satoshi and the others are probably waiting for us." The coordinator said innocently as she smiled at her unsuspecting pokemon.

Unfortunately for Pachirisu, it didn't notice the ruse as it happily ran towards Hikari and jumped into her arms sealing its' fate.

The poor pokemon's screams went on deaf's ears as the coordinator made sure the electric rodent got the message this time.

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At the pokemon center, after a few minutes of searching for each other the four trainers talked about their lives since they had been apart as they sat at a lunch table.

After Satoshi explained the situation in Pallet Town and asked for their help, Kotone eagerly replied, "Of course we'll help you two find the professor! Right Kazunari?"

The boy was shaking in fear however as he replied, "But those Team Zodiac guys seem pretty scary. I don't think we can stop something as evil as them. What if they capture us...or worse?"

The boy's imagination quickly thought up every cruel and dangerous thing that could possibly have happened to them as his whole body began to tremble. Both Satoshi and Hikari nervously laughed at this while Kotone placed her hand on her forehead muttering something along the lines of "Be a man already."

Looking down, the girl from Johto noticed something as she asked, "Hey Hikari...are you sure Pachirisu is gonna be okay? He hasn't moved an inch since we got here."

Taking a bite of one of her sliced fruits, the Sinnoh coordinator only smiled as she replied, "He'll be fine. He's still just a little shocked from our talk about obedience that's all."

At that moment, Hikari's Piplup stared at the unfortunate electric rodent. As Pachirisu's spirit hovered over its' lifeless body the penguin-like pokemon silently prayed for its' safe return.

Watching the scene, Hikari smiled as she took another bite of her fruit. From that day on, she was certain Pachirisu would think twice before it ever left its' pokeball again.

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* * *

**Chapter 4: The Body Shakes, The Heart Trembles!**

* * *

Dawn: Yay! We're finally back! It's been soooo long.

Kotone: Hehe...and not a moment too soon.

Dawn: What do you mean? -Confused-

Kotone: -Whistles innocently then looks at Cloud with a devilish grin-

Cloud: My apologies in advance Dawn. On to the disclaimer!

Kotone & Dawn: Cloud Advent does not own Pokemon. But even he can dream right?

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Return to Johto

-Chapter 4-

It was a sunny day in the Johto region as Satoshi, Hikari, Kotone, and Kazunari continued their journey to find Professor Oak who had been kidnapped by the evil Team Zodiac.

"So do you guys have any leads on where the professor might be?" Kotone asked as they continued down the long dirt road they were on.

Satoshi turned to the Johto native and replied with a frown, "Other than the fact that it was Team Zodiac that kidnapped him and that they were headed somewhere here in the Johto Region...nothing."

Noticing the sad look that slowly grew on the raven haired trainer's face, Hikari replied, "We'll definitely find him Satoshi. I mean, at least we know he's in the Johto region right? And besides, the professor's not exactly a pushover either. He'll be fine."

The Sinnoh coordinator then gave the boy a reassuring smile that quickly brought the boys spirits up. "Yeah, your right. We just have to find him bring him back home." Satoshi said with a smile.

"That's right. No need to worry." Hikari added returning the gesture.

Watching the two trainers happily smiling at each other, a sly grin began to grow on Kotone's face as she added, "You two are certainly close. Did something happen while we were apart?"

Realizing what the girl had meant, Hikari quickly shook her head in denial and turned away to hide the rather suspicious looking blush that had started to grow on her cheeks. Satoshi, meanwhile, looked quite confused and asked, "What do you mean?"

Kotone and even Hikari let out a sigh after hearing the boy ask such a stupid question. Was it really possible to be that dense?

As they trudged on, Kotone noticed that her long time traveling companion had quite a nervous look on his face. Turning to face him she asked, "Hey, something wrong Kazunari?"

The boy with the glasses snapped out of his trance and quickly shook his head. "N-no, nothing's wrong.

I'm perfectly fine. I mean why wouldn't I be fine right? It's not like i'm afraid or anything. Hahaha. I mean there's no reason to be afraid. After all we're only chasing after a dangerous criminal organization bent on world domination. What could possibly be scary about that right? Nothing to worry about right? Hahaha," the boy stated as he nervously tried laugh it off to no avail.

Kotone placed a hand on her face as she let out a sigh realizing the boy was still terrified about Team Zodiac.

Satoshi turned to Kazunari and spoke reassuringly, "Hey, don't worry Kazunari. We'll be fine. I've come across tons of evil organization's like Team Magma and Team Galactic. Not to mention Team Rocket's always trying to pull something everywhere we g-..."

The raven haired trainer quickly stopped speaking after noticing his words were causing the young Johto breeder to start shaking in fear yet again.

"N-no need to worry Kazunari. We'll be fine as long as we stick together." Hikari added trying to lift the boy's spirits. The boy only managed to nod although he was still visibly shaking. Seeing this, Kotone only shook her head as she mumbled, "He's hopeless."

Thinking of what to do, a light bulb suddenly turned on in Satoshi's head. "Hey Kazunari, how bout you and me have a quick battle?"

The others turned to Satoshi in confusion as the trainer with the glasses asked, "W-why do you want to battle so suddenly?"

"Well...if we are really going to go against Team Zodiac, then we should train and battle as much as possible before then so we'll be ready for them," the Pallet Town native reasoned.

"I'd rather not face them at all." Kazunari replied glumly.

Satoshi smiled as he replied, "Don't say that. Besides it's better to be prepared than to not be right? Besides, I want to see how much stronger you've gotten since the Johto Festa."

Hearing all this Kotone quickly added with a grin, "Come on Kazunari. It might actually do you some good. You really have gotten better since they last saw after all so why not show them. Plus it's your big chance to impress Hikari here."

Kazunari instantly turned red as the blue haired coordinator turned to him with a look of shock.

"K-kotone! D-don't say such things that will cause a misunderstanding!" he stammered embarrassed by the situation he was in.

"Alright fine." Kotone replied with a devilish little grin. "But you should definitely have a battle with Satoshi." she added honestly as she looked at her Johto companion.

The boy wanted to protest but figured it was a losing battle. Besides there actually was someone he really wanted to impress and battling Satoshi might really be his best chance at it.

"Okay. I'll do it."

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After stopping in a nearby field, Satoshi and Kazunari quickly got into their battle positions as Hikari and Kotone watched on the sidelines.

"I'll let you start things off Kazunari." the raven haired trainer offered.

Kazunari nodded as he replied, "Okay. Come on out...Gabite!"

In a flash of bright lights, a dark-blue shark like pokemon appeared. "Gaa-bite!"

"Hey, is that the Gible you caught in Sinnoh? So it must have evolved huh? It looks really strong." The Kanto trainer complimented.

"You're up Satoshi." Kazunari stated with a determined look.

Noticing the boy's sudden seriouness, Satoshi nodded as a confident smile grew on his own face as he pulled out a pokeball. "Alright then, I choose you Totodile!"

Soon after the blue alligator like pokemon appeared happily dancing around before it assuming a battle stance.

"You're move Kazunari." the trainer from Pallet Town stated, smirking confidently.

"I'm gonna wipe that smirk off your face. Gabite, use take down!" the breeder commanded.

Gabite began to charge towards Satoshi's Totodile, ready to strike at full force.

"Dodge it Totodile and use water gun!" Satoshi ordered.

The alligator pokemon managed to sidestep the charging dragon pokemon before unleashing a heavy blast of water from it's mouth, hitting Gabite cleanly.

"Shake it off Gabite and use dragon claw" Kazunari countered.

Gabite shook off the affect of the water attack and charged once more at Totodile, this time striking the alligator pokemon with it's glowing claws.

"Totodile!" Satoshi cried as he watched his pokemon fly backwards from the attack before landing on it's feet.

Meanwhile, Kotone and Hikari were watching the battle from the sidelines, too far for the two boys to be able to hear their conversation, and both of the girls were impressed by what they were seeing.

"Wow, Kazunari's really serious." Hikari stated, surprised by the boy's sudden change in attitude.

Kotone nodded as she added, "Yeah. He's been doing that a lot lately. Usually he tries to avoid battling and anything dangerous but once he's started it's almost impossible to stop him."

The blue haired coordinator nodded as she watched the battle unfold. "He's really good."

"Falling for him already Hikari?" the Johto girl teased.

"N-no! It's not like that!" the Sinnoh native replied as her face reddened. After getting her blush under control Hikari looked at the other girl with a frown and whined, "Hey Kotone...you've been teasing me a lot lately. What's the deal?"

Kotone smiled as she placed her hands behind her head. "Oh nothing~ Maybe I just enjoy seeing Hikari's troubled face. Or maybe i'm just trying to distract you long enough to steal Satoshi away from you." she added with a slight smirk after that last comment.

Hikari eyes widened as she quickly stammered, "W-what do you mean steal Satoshi away from me?"

Kotone continued to smile as she replied, "Kazunari's a nice guy, but he's totally undependable. And Satoshi's...well...he's the kind of guy I like."

Hearing this caused Hikari to feel all sorts of emotions she's never felt before. Why was she feeling this way?

Kotone took a glance at Satoshi before turning to her blue haired companion. "I'll ask you this again Hikari. And I want a real answer this time. What is Satoshi to you?" she asked with a soft yet serious tone.

The coordinator's heart started to tremble at the girl's sudden question. Why were her words affecting her this much. She had thought of the raven haired trainer as a really close friend...but was that really all? Looking at Kotone, she noticed that the girl from Johto was dead serious and that meant...

Hikari lips shook as she spoke, "I-I..u-uh...S-Satoshi...to me is..."

Just then a loud explosion was heard not to far in the distance catching the group off guard.

"W-what was that?" Kazunari exclaimed as he looked around in all directions.

"It came from over there!" Kotone replied as she pointed northwards.

"Let's go check it out!" Satoshi shouted as he led the way; the other's following right behind him.

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Just north of where Satoshi and the other's were was a large crater caused by the sudden explosion.

"Damn useless technology. I told those idiots it would be easier for me to just walk here on foot," a tall, scary man cursed as he looked at the destruction that laid in front of him.

Just then a beeping sound was heard coming from his pocket as he pulled out a rather complex device. After pushing a button a hologram of none other than Raijin of Team Zodiac appeared.

"Bwahahaha. Looks like you've run into some trouble. Anyway, I hope you understand the mission you've been assigned."

The tall man only glared at the image of the large man before replying bitterly, "Of course I understand you ignorant gorilla. Now go back to watching that old fart before I report you to the leader you stupid neanderthal."

He then closed the signal before Raijin could even begin his angry reply.

"To think they'd assign me to something as pathetic as kidnapping. I'm one of the four generals of Team Zodiac for god's sake," the man stated with a slight bitterness in his voice.

Taking out a note from his pocket he read, "Mission Briefing: Capture the girl traveling with the boy known as Satoshi and bring her back to HQ- alive."

Just then Satoshi and the others arrived on the scene and quickly made their way over towards the crater.

The tall man only smirked as he stated, "Looks like my job has become much easier. Forgive me children, but I must be brief."

Pulling out a pokeball he quickly tossed it into the air as he readied himself for battle.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

* * *

**Chapter 5: A Hint of Darkness! Kurai Appears!**

* * *

Satoshi: Eh? What's with the cliffhangers?

Kazunari: I-i'd really like to know what happens next.

Satoshi: Come on Cloud get on with it!

Cloud: So impatient...maybe I should end this whole story right now..BY KILLING ALL OF YOU!!! BWAHAHAHAHAHA

Satoshi & Kazunari: -gulp- Scary...

Cloud: -Recomposes self- Patience is a virtue. Now on to the disclaimer.

Satoshi & Kazunari: Cloud Advent does not own pokemon. But if he did...god help us all.

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Return to Johto

-Chapter 5-

"The stage is yours, Gengar."

From out of the pokeball appeared a large, dark, purple creature with red eyes and a very creepy smile. It almost seemingly appeared to be grinning sinisterly at the group of young trainers.

"W-what do you think you're doing?" Satoshi yelled as he glared at the unknown man. His Pikachu and Totodile immediately placed themselves in between him and the ghost pokemon ready to attack at the boy's command.

The tall man chuckled as he glanced at Satoshi's group. "So you are the kids i'm after? To think they would call on someone of my status to kidnap one of you runts."

Hikari was the first to reply as she spoke, "Kidnap? What do you mean? Who are you?"

The tall man only smiled as he took a bow. "Forgive my manners. I am General Kurai of Team Zodiac. I'm under orders to capture one of you so if you know what's good for you, you won't resist me."

Hikari and other's eyes widened as they heard his introduction. He was a member of Team Zodiac and a general no less. This was a very dangerous situation.

The raven haired trainer was still eying the man angrily. "You're not capturing anything. And what did you guys do with the professor? Where are you keeping him?" he demanded.

The general only shrugged with indifference as he replied, "I don't know. And even if I did it wouldn't matter much as it's really none of your business runt." He then lifted his finger and pointed it towards Hikari. "Now if you're done asking questions, i'd like that girl to come with me."

The blue-haired coordinator slowly backed away from the man as Satoshi stepped in between her and Kurai.

"What do you want with Hikari?" the raven haired trainer angrily asked as his eyes stubbornly remained on the tall frightening man.

"Unfortunately for that girl, she's part of our plans just like your dear professor. Now hand her over." He demanded.

"There is no way we're gonna let you take Hikari!" Kotone exclaimed loudly as she pulled out a pokeball.

"T-that's right!" Kazunari added as his Gabite readied itself for attack.

The girl from Sinnoh quickly took out a pokeball and tossed into the air. Soon a large mammoth like pokemon stood at her side ready for her command. Hikari's Mamoswine towered over everyone as it turned towards the general. "I'm not gonna just stand by and let you do what you want!" she stated defiantly as she stood her ground.

Satoshi nodded as he readied himself for battle as well. "Kurai, if you want to take Hikari so badly then you're gonna have to take her over our dead bodies!" he yelled as his pokemon waited for his command.

Soon, the sound of laughter was heard as General Kurai broke into hysteria. After a few moments, he soon got his laugh under control and his lips settled into a terrifying grin. "You runts are too much. Do you really think you stand a chance against me? Allow me to show you a small taste of the evil you are about to face!"

With that the tall man lifted his hand in the air and snapped his fingers. Suddenly the ground started to shake to violently before a very large stone serpent appeared from the earth below.

"A Steelix?!? When did he call that out?" Hikari frantically asked taken aback from the steel pokemon's sudden appearance.

"I-I don't know. I d-didn't see him call it out from it's pokeball. H-how did he..?" Kazunari questioned fearfully as his knees started to shake with terror at the sight of the intimidating pokemon.

Kurai's evil smirk still remained on his face as he called out his order. "Steelix, sandstorm!"

The large steel serpent let out a loud roar as parts of it's body began to rotate rapidly. Suddenly, the ground once again shook violently and a strong gust of wind, rock and dirt began spiraling around Satoshi's group before turning into a large sandstorm. They all had to cover their eyes from the intense storm and were completely immobilized.

"This storm is...so strong. I can't see a thing." Satoshi gritted his teeth as he was unable to do anything but shield his eyes at the moment.

Watching the large wall of spiraling rubble in front of him, General Kurai looked to his Gengar and gave it a nod. Knowing what it's master meant, the sinister ghost type pokemon quickly dove headfirst into the storm. Sensing danger, Hikari's Mamoswine blindly swung it's large tusks around violently; hoping to make contact with the intruder but to no avail.

Soon, a loud shriek was heard and from out of the storm came Kurai's Gengar with Hikari firmly in it's grasps.

Hearing her scream the others worriedly called out, "Hikari!"

"Let me go!" The blue haired girl commanded as she struggled to get free from the pokemon's grasp. Her wish was answered as the ghost pokemon dropped onto the ground below. Hikari quickly tried to put some distance between her and the Gengar but it too fast and soon appeared in front of her face. The ghost pokemon's eyes suddenly glowed an eerie blue and soon Hikari's vision began to blur. Soon her legs gave out from underneath her as her vision faded to black while she harmlessly fell to the ground.

Walking over to the fallen girl, Kurai lifted her unconscious form and threw her over his shoulder. Pulling out another pokeball, he threw it into the air. This time the psychic pokemon, Alakazam, appeared from the ball.

The Team Zodiac general then returned Gengar and Steelix to their respective pokeballs before giving his Alakazam a command.

Just then, the sandstorm subsided and as Satoshi struggled to get his bearings he instantly spotted Kurai with an unconscious Hikari hung over his shoulders. Breaking into a mad dash towards the man, the boy prayed he would make it in time.

The tall man only smirked at the boy as he left a few a cryptic words for Satoshi.

"We'll meet again runt..."

Despite running as fast as he possibly could, Satoshi could only watch in horror as General Kurai and Hikari vanished into thin air.

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Elsewhere, Raijin was busy "entertaining" Professor Oak while he waited for the taller general to give him a call so he could continue with their previous argument. Just then, a hologram of Kurai appeared on a nearby table and instantly caught the large man's attention.

"You've got a lot of nerve hanging up on me like that you damn twig." Raijin started as he angrily glared at his fellow general.

The tall man only scoffed as he replied, "I have no time for your idiotic rants you useless gorilla. I only called to let you know that i've captured the girl and we're on route to HQ."

Raijin wanted to beat the crap out of the other man right there but decided to hold off until he was physically present.

"Hmph. Just be sure the girl gets there in one piece. Otherwise i'll personally come over there and beat you mys-"

Before he could even finish the connection went off obviously meaning that Kurai once again hung up on him.

"GAAAAAH!! THAT GUY REALLY PISSES ME OFF!!! I'M GONNA RIP HIS HEAD OFF HIS SPINE THE NEXT TIME I SEE HIM!!!"

After venting off his anger, the large man settled as an evil grin slowly grew across his face.

Turning to the professor's beaten form he stated, "Looks like you'll be having company Oak. However I doubt she'll put up as much of a fight as you have. Bwahaha."

Professor Oak could only grimace as he heard the man's words. He had been beaten severely but he was strong enough both mentally and physically to take it.

However, he feared that the girl they were speaking of wouldn't have that same strength.

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The boy from Pallet Town dropped to his knees as emotions began to bubble inside his heart. Meanwhile, Kotone and Kazunari managed to regain their senses only for realization to kick in. They quickly turned to Satoshi only to find that neither Hikari nor the general were with him.

Unable to keep his emotions bottled up any longer Satoshi lifted his head towards the sky as he screamed out in anguish.

"HIKARI!!!"

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

* * *

**Chapter 6: Special Chapter: Takeshi's Love Saga Pt1**

* * *

Hikari: Ahhh!!! What's gonna happen to me!?!?

Satoshi: How are we gonna save her?

Kotone: Will Satoshi and I end up together?

Satoshi & Kazunari: ..WHAT?!?

Takeshi: Why am I not in this story...and why does Satoshi get all the love!?!

Cloud: I will reveal one of these mysteries...after this disclaimer!

All: Cloud Advent does not own Pokemon. But at least he has chicken!

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

Return to Johto

-Special Chapter-

"Oh Nurse Joy! You're gorgeous eyes make my heart burn with a raging passion like the midsummer's sun. You're radiant smile makes me want to ho- ACKKK!!!"

A certain squinty-eyed young man yelped out in pain as he felt a sharp stinging jab hit his side courtesy of his croagunk. Nurse Joy could only let out a nervous laugh as she watched the boy's unfortunate dilemma.

Takeshi took a moment to recover from another one of his pokemon's "love jabs" before he added, "P-please treat my pokemon Nurse Joy."

The nurse smiled as she took the young man's pokemon. "Sure thing Takeshi. I'll have them in tip-top shape in no time," the older woman replied with a smile as she turned and headed to the emergency room followed closely behind by Takeshi's croagunk.

Takeshi let out a sigh as he turned around and looked at the empty lobby behind him. Soon waterfalls of tears began pouring out of his eyes as he whimpered, "Nurse Joy and I were completely alone. It was the perfect chance! Why did croagunk have to ruin the moment. That pickup line was golden! I spent all night coming up with that one!!"

After taking a moment to reflect on his most recent failure at wooing a woman, Takeshi lowered his head in shame as he walked towards the nearest seat.

Just then, the front doors slid open as a young woman quickly hurried into the pokemon center. However, the girl was moving too quickly and collided headfirst with our unfortunate pokemon breeder and causing both of them to fall to the ground.

"Ow, that's gonna leave a mark." Takeshi groaned as he slowly regained his senses. It was then that he realized there was an odd weight on his chest. Soon his eyes were greeted with a pair of glowing ocean blue eyes and long flowing locks of blond hair.

"I-i'm so sorry!" the girl quickly apologized as she looked down at the young man beneath her. "I should have watched where why I was going and...ahhh i'm so sorry! Are you okay?"

The young breeder immediately sprung into action and clasped the girls hands within his own. "Do not worry my dear for the only pain I feel now is the pain of not having met you sooner. You're beauty transcends the boundaries of time and space and my heart trembles at the sight of yo- ACKK!!"

The young man instantly tensed up and grabbed his side as the girl looked on in worry. "W-what's wrong?" she asked wondering if the boy suffered some kind of stroke.

The breeder could only give a nervous grin as he answered, "S-sorry it's sort of a reflex. This is usually the time when my croagunk decides to cut my declarations of love short."

The young woman let out a cute giggle as she replied, "Well that's not very nice of it. You know, i'm actually a sucker for those poetic types. My name's Kotori by the way."

Hearing this, our ecstatic breeder's eyes shined with enthusiasm as he vowed to practice his poetry with even more vigor than ever before.

He then eagerly replied, "M-my name's Takeshi and it is definitely a pleasure meeting you Kotori."

The young blond got up off of Takeshi and held out her hand to help him up which he gladly accepted. After getting up, the squinty-eyed breeder couldn't help but look at the beautiful girl that stood in front of him. She wore a white tank top that showcased her very well developed "assets" which the breeder struggled to keep from glancing at as he looked the girl over. She wore a light blue skirt wrapped with a stylish black belt with a golden heart buckle and a pair of blue and white boots to match. Her beautiful blond hair was held up in stylish ponytail while her bangs were styled around her gorgeous blue eyes and kept in place with a blue flower hair clip. To put it simply, this girl was a beautiful goddess. At least, that's how Takeshi would describe her.

After straightening himself out the young breeder asked, "So what's the rush Kotori? You seemed like you were in a real hurry."

It was then that the girl remembered why she was at the pokemon center in the first place. "Oh no! I almost forgot! My poor little Starly's sick!"

The girl then looked around the room as though she had lost something precious before she felt something wiggle around in her shirt. Soon a little bird head popped out of her cleavage which caused Takeshi's face to redden as he quickly tried to avert his attention away from the bird and it's current "nest" to no avail.

"Ah, there you are Starly! What are you doing hiding in there?" the girl asked as she pulled the tiny bird out of her shirt. "He's why I was in such a hurry. You see, he hasn't eaten anything since i've gotten him. I've tried all sorts of pokemon food but he just won't eat. I started to get worried and thought he might be ill so that's when I decided to come rushing here." Kotori explained.

The girl then pulled out a piece of pokemon food from her pocket as she attempted to feed the bird. Her starly however, turned it's head away from the food causing the girl to frown. "I'm really worried." she added sadly.

Takeshi took a moment to examine the little bird pokemon and it's food. He then went into his pack and pulled out a can of special pokemon food along with some grounded berry powder. After sprinkling the powder onto the food, the breeder then offered it to the hungry little bird.

Kotori was shocked and amazed as she watched her pokemon eagerly gobble up all of Takeshi's special pokemon food.

"Wow! That's really amazing Takeshi!" she said in awe as she gazed at her once hungry pokemon as it finished the pokemon food.

"Your starly seems to really like certain types of berries in it's food. I guess the pokemon food you were trying to give him didn't have the berries he liked." the breeder stated as he readied another round of his special pokemon food for Kotori's starly. "If you want I could make you a list of the kinds of berries your starly might like."

The blond nodded her head as she replied, "You must really know a lot about taking care of pokemon huh?"

"Of course. My goal is to be the world's best pokemon breeder. So i'm working hard to find out as much about taking care of pokemon as possible," the Pewter City native stated seriously.

Kotori seemed to look on in awe before replying, "Wow, Takeshi that's really cool. I'm sure you'll accomplish your goal." Just then, her starly nudged her as she happily pet the bird on it's head. "Starly thinks so too," she added with a smile.

Takeshi returned her smile with one of his own as he replied, "Thanks for the kind words."

At that moment, Nurse Joy appeared from the emergency carrying a small tray of pokeballs.

"Takeshi, your pokemon are all good to go," the nurse announced as she smiled at the young breeder. The squinty-eyed young man eagerly rushed towards Joy ready to give another one of his famous pickup lines but quickly halted to a stop when he felt a dark aura being emitting from one of his pokeballs. Feeling a slight tingly feeling in the pit of his stomach, Takeshi resorted to just taking the pokeballs and thanking the nurse before walking back to Kotori.

The girl smiled at the breeder before she asked, "Say Takeshi. I know this is a really weird question since we just met but if you don't mind...do you think you can walk me home? It's getting rather late and well...i'm afraid of walking alone at night." The girl's gaze lowered towards the ground as a slight tint of red slowly grew across her cheeks.

Takeshi couldn't help but notice how cute the girl looked at that moment before looking outside of a nearby window. It was as she said. The sun was setting and soon the darkness would cover the land. It would definitely be dangerous for a beautiful young lady to be wandering the streets on her own.

"I'd be happy to escort you home Miss Kotori," Takeshi replied with one of his charming smiles.

The girl's face immediately brightened up as she heard this. "R-really?" she asked almost as if she didn't believe the young man had actually agreed to take her home.

Takeshi only continued to grin as he added, "Lead the way."

Kotori returned his smile as she happily lead the young breeder out of the pokemon center.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

As the stars twinkled in the night sky, Kotori and Takeshi trudged on down the road leading to the young blond's home. Along the way, Kotori asked the Pewter Gym leader about everything from his days of being the Pewter City Gym Leader to the different places he's been to and the people he's seen during his travels with Satoshi and the others. The blond seemed to be really interested in knowing about the different places outside of the Kanto region.

"Amazing. You've been to so many places Takeshi. I wish I could see places like the ones you've seen..." the girl said as a bit sadness etched itself into her tone.

Noticing this, the breeder asked, "Well why don't you Kotori? You could start your own pokemon journey with your starly and see the world with your own eyes."

The girl's face dropped slightly as she heard this. She then sadly replied, "I really wish I could. I've been dreaming about that for a long time now...but...my father won't let me."

Takeshi noticed the sadness in the girl's eyes and immediately asked, "Why won't your father let you? It's your dream right?"

Kotori looked up at the stars that illuminated the night sky as she answered the breeder's question. "He still thinks of me as his little princess. He says that i'm not strong enough to handle traveling. That's why he keeps me locked up at home. The only time I even get to see outside of my own house is when I sneak out when father's away on business."

Soon the girl's eyes began to water as she struggled to keep her emotions in check. "I just...really wanted to see it for myself you know. To see the world with my pokemon...and to see it all with my own eyes...that's...all I ever wanted."

The tears began to fall from Kotori's eyes as she could no longer hold back the feeling of frustration and sadness she felt. To see the world and start her own journey was her dream.

Seeing the girl breakdown in front of him, Takeshi walked up to the girl and placed his hands on her shoulders for support. The girl looked up the young breeder who had a serious yet caring look on his face.

"Don't worry Kotori. I'll convince your father to let you start your own journey. He's got no right in stopping you from following your dream," the breeder stated with a seriousness in his tone.

The girl's face immediately turned into look of surprise before a sad smile slowly took over. She then replied, "Takeshi...it's fine. You don't have to do that. If I can't convince him what makes you think you can?"

The older male shook his head as he took the girl's hands in his own. "I'll find a way. There's no way I can just stand by and let a beautiful girl cry in front of me like you just did and not do anything about it. Trust me Kotori. I'll get your father to let you start your own journey."

The girl's eyes widened as she heard the young man's words. "Y-you'll really do that for me Takeshi?"

The breeder nodded his head in reply.

"And will you come with me? If can convince my father to let me go...will you come with me on my journey?" the girl asked hoping the breeder would say yes.

Takeshi's hands were still firmly on the girl's shoulders as he looked into the girl's ocean blue eyes. His face relaxed into a smile as he answered, "Just leave it to Takeshi."

Kotori could feel more tears slowly begin to form in her eyes...only this time they were tears of joy. She then quickly burried her head into Takeshi's chest and wrapped her arms around the young breeder catching him off guard.

"Thank you! Thank you so much!" she said as she embraced our young breeder.

Takeshi couldn't help but feel a little warm inside...for various reasons.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

As the pair continued down the road they stopped in front of a large gate.

"I don't think i've ever seen this here before," Takeshi thought a loud as he looked at the large gate that stood before them.

"That's because it was just put here recently. It's to keep any intruders from coming near the mansion." Kotori replied as she entered a few numbers into a nearby keypad.

"M-mansion!?! You live in a mansion?" Takeshi asked in shock.

The girl nervously smiled as she nodded her head. She then added, "I guess I should properly introduce myself. My name is Kotori Silph. My father is the new president of Silph Co."

Takeshi's face seemed to have frozen in place. This girl was the daughter of one of the most powerful businessman in all of Kanto. And he was supposed to convince that very same businessman to let his daughter travel with him, a complete stranger, around the world.

Just then, the gate opened just as a long luxurious looking limousine pulled up in front of pair. As the limo came to a stop the driver stepped out of the vehicle and walked around towards the back. He then opened the door and from out of the limo stepped a rather large and intimidating looking man.

The man's eyes immediately locked on to Takeshi's which made the young man's knees quiver in fear.

This was definitely not part of the plan.

X-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x


	4. Author's Note: Another Update!

**Update!**

Hey everyone! I know you're all totally tired of these updates and i'm truly sorry but I am working on the rewrite so don't fret. I have a couple updates though. I will be using the japanese names in this rewrite. The pokemon will also be using their japanese names. I'll be using the english names for the pokemon attacks though since they sound better to me. For you english readers who are too lazy to look up the japanese names I'll list them in a later update. Also there's just something I want to know. What pokemon do you want Satoshi (Ash) to have with him on his journey through Johto? Pikachu is a given and I also want to keep Totodile as well. That leaves four other spots. Message me or leave a review about the pokemon you want Ash to have with him or if you want me to just leave those spots open so that Ash can catch some new pokemon in Johto. Again sorry for all the confusion but I will get this story back on as soon as possible.

Thanks for the support!

-Cloud Advent.


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